Peace, not war

Is our present world closer to peace or war at this time?

The North Korean missile launching last August 29 which passed through Hokkaido in Northern Japan has raised the alarm for heightened tension and possible military confrontation affecting not only this region but the whole world.

Kim Jong Un’s latest ballistic missile fell about 1,180 km off the Japanese east coast. The launch has been interpreted as Pyongyang’s clear signal that their missile can hit longer distance targets, including Guam or perhaps the US mainland, across the Pacific.

With economic sanctions unable to stop North Korea, will military options be the only available option to take?

This week, more than ever, the world is beyond ignoring the threat of North Korea as unfounded and impossible. It seems the more economic sanctions and negative statements raised against North Korea, the more frequent missiles have been launched and ordered by Kim Jong Un.

Trump’s latest response - “all options are on the table” - will certainly provoke the North Korean leader to continue his military launches even more. More joint military drills between South Korea and the US and Japan and the US have been answered with more missile launches by North Korea.

We fervently pray other non-military options can be tapped and explored by the rest of the world to protect any country or anyone from being harmed by any nuclear missile launched from North Korea or anywhere else. There are diplomatic channels that can still be intensely and jointly pursued, both by allies and non-allies of North Korea.

Let us all seriously join together and pray for world leaders to be enlightened to take the path of peace, rather than war, to prioritize people’s protection rather than their own individual agenda for power and control. Rather than consider each nation’s actions as provocations, let us pray that the leaders of nations more calmly allow more options to be considered, never and not solely military.

Closer to home, is it possible that another launch may be directed towards the Philippines, with known strong ties with the US? How prepared are this nation’s leaders and military to cope with any external military threat?

God forbid such possibility. Given the present sorry state of military intelligence, preparation, and capability shown in the Marawi conflict and the drug war, we seriously need to ring all the church bells and gather everyone, from now on, to intensify our prayer teams to bombard heaven with our petitions and pleas for God to embrace us with His peace and protection.

How prepared are the Filipino people for any missile attack? God forbid, our present disaster management remains challenged and ineffective, how much more nuclear missile attacks?

Japan’s readiness, preparedness for any emergency was promptly in place, with its J-Alert warning system repeatedly sending information and providing guidance to residents about the latest August 29 missile launch in Japanese, through various media- TV, radio, smartphones and other social media.

“A missile was fired from North Korea. Please evacuate to a sturdy building or basement.” How would you have reacted to have received this unexpected loud alert early morning while you were still asleep or among those getting ready to leave for work or school?

In Japan, panic was among the most common response. One Filipino mother in Japan panicked, not knowing where and how to evacuate her young children! Another common response was to tune in to their TV or radio for more information. Prayer and the request for prayers flooded FB as well!

Definitely, our Filipino people also need to be prepared for any missile attack, given the uncertainty of these troubled times.